As the first European settlement in Connecticut, Windsor is not the biggest or the most famous town, and a few might argue that they might not even be first. But if you are a historian or genealogist and your research involves Connecticut, then you are very likely to end up in this historic town. So many early European-American families got their start here that researchers naturally find themselves searching for information on Windsor’s early history and first families. Luckily the Windsor Historical Society is there to provide many of the resources these researchers are looking for. Town residents, Connecticut citizens, and out-of-state tourists visit for the historic attractions offered by the Society and for the research materials available in its Library.
Founded in 1921, the Windsor Historical Society is a nonprofit organization formed to “inspire public awareness and appreciation of the diverse people, places, and events that contribute to Windsor’s evolving history.” As well as exhibition galleries, a museum shop and bookstore, two historic houses, and a hands-on learning center, the Society has an active Library open to the public. The Library maintains an important collection of books, manuscript collections, cemetery records, regional and state histories, town reports, local newspapers, school yearbooks, city directories, ephemera, and maps. All this material helps tell the story of Windsor and the families that lived there. Though area residents make good use of the Library’s collections for local history research, the library also attracts many people from outside Windsor and outside Connecticut. Genealogists, students, and researchers all make use of the Library’s published collection of genealogies, local Windsor and regional histories, local newspapers, and area historical journals.
Besides collections of these published materials, the Library owns about 60 different manuscript collections. Among them are family papers, church records, cemetery records, and Windsor vital records. The Library owns over 100 account books from 18th and 19th century Windsor businesses. The Connecticut tobacco industry is the object of renewed interest recently and the Library has important manuscript material in this area including the Huntingdon Brothers Records and the Records of the Shade Tobacco Growers Agricultural Association. The Library also has been protecting and indexing material in what they call the “Old Document Project.” This collection includes various land records, business documents, legal documents, estate documents, town contracts for road work and school teachers, lists of district school pupils, early military documents, and personal records including genealogies and correspondence. This Project’s materials are well indexed by name, date, and document type. Of particular interest to Windsor residents, and a popular research topic, are the Library’s material on historic Windsor houses. Many Windsor home owners use the Library’s resources for exploring the history of their historic homes and the homes’ previous occupants.
As is often the case with local history collections, the Windsor Historical Society Library has extensive photograph and postcard collections. The Library is also actively accumulating and organizing maps from primary and secondary sources. These materials see heavy use and require special care.
The past newsletters of the Windsor Historical Society have research value in their own right and the Society has indexed and made them available in paper and online via the Society’s website. Also included on the website are descriptions and finding aids for many of the manuscript collections available in the Library. Besides finding aids, the library has a card catalog and is using museum-specific software to compile a database of its holdings.
Barbara Goodwin, Librarian for the Society Library, works on creating more finding aids and in organizing and collecting material for the Library. Goodwin would like to see the holdings of the Library represented in the statewide reQuest database some day. Right now the Library has a budget for new acquisitions and it does accept donations of documents, manuscripts, and other material that “relate to Windsor history, Windsor genealogy, or the object collections of the Windsor Historical Society.” None of the items in the Library’s collections circulate. Goodwin encourages researches to visit the library in person where she can provide direct assistance. She will also assist those who are seeking help by mail or by email and a certain amount of research is provided for free before any research fees kick in. Goodwin gets assistance on specific projects and some genealogy research from a group of about a half-dozen volunteers.
The Windsor Historical Society Library is open Tuesday – Saturday, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. with a nominal admission charge of $5.00. They are closed Sunday, Monday, and major holidays. Find out more about the Windsor Historical Society and its Library at http://www.windsorhistoricalsociety.org.
An edited version of this article appeared previously in Connecticut Libraries.
